Insights

Vanity Numbers, Voice Search, and the Modern Consumer

Sep 15, 2017

Since Google Home™, Amazon Alexa™ and other “smart speaker” devices have hit the market, marketers are gaining new insights into the behavior of their users. According to this 2017 report by Chicago based digital advertising agency, Walker Sands, over 43% of young mobile users have made a purchase via a queried search since summer of 2016, and 20% of mobile users across all demographics have made a purchase on a voice-controlled device. With Google’s plan to roll out voice enabled phone calls on its Google Home™ personal assistant devices this month, now is a better time than ever to look at the use of memorable Toll-Free Numbers for your customers to use.

The popularity of voice search and calls on mobile devices is not a new phenomenon. SearchEngineland recently reported that Google’s 2014 Mobile Voice Survey showed 55% of teens and 41% of adults have stated that they’ve been using the feature when available since 2014. What has changed over the last four years or so are four main factors:

• A maturing pre-teen and teen market that is starting to make their own consumer decisions.
• A shift in behavior that shows consumers have become more willing to use voice commands, especially to make calls, perform an online search or text.  
• A growing number of devices offering consumers the ability to perform these functions are now available on the market.
• An improvement in the overall field of Artificial Intelligence based personal assistants such as Siri®, or Amazon’s Alexa™.

Ease of use is the common thread in customers’ communication preferences. The majority (SearchEngineLand says 71%) of voice search users say they adopted the technology because it’s fast, while others prefer the hands-free aspect. These are valid reasons for consumers to adopt voice commands into their daily lives, but how does this information help Responsible Organizations (Resp Orgs) and enterprises improve their inbound call-strategy?

Let’s explore the benefits of Toll-Free Vanity Numbers. One of the reasons 1-800-Flowers® is such a popular brand is due to it’s easy to remember brand name, which also happens to be its highly dialed Toll-Free Number that allows customers to call and place orders for custom floral arrangements. The name and number both speak directly to the company’s primary service, and suggest convenience and legitimacy, as the customer is always only 10 easy to remember digits away from getting their needs met. 

Taking all of this into consideration, here are a few ways that Toll-Free Vanity Numbers can complement any good voice search marketing strategy:

Reach Your Youngest Audience

We already know that Millennials are pretty tricky when it comes to communicating with brands. For the younger market, the few seconds saved from telling Siri “Call 1 (888)- Amazon” versus “1 (888) 280-4331” is a major deal. For now, brands can rely on youths to use voice commands and calling via search, (example: “Alexa, call Amazon Customer Service” instead of directly calling).  However, as more users begin to use these features, businesses will need to a faster way to validate their phone numbers before the call begins in order to avoid missed opportunities.

Increase Your Incoming Call Volume

Boosting brand recognition is one of the easiest ways to improve an inbound marketing strategy. The same is true for businesses that rely on inbound calling. A customer is more likely to provide a referral if they can remember the phone number or website off of the top of their head.

Drive More “In the Moment” Purchases

Impulse buying is one of the central drivers of the modern economy, and in the digital age, capturing customers right as they’re planning their purchases or looking to spend money is almost a slam-dunk sale. Due to the high retention rate of Toll-Free Vanity Numbers, (almost 58% higher than vanity URLs, according to 800response!) businesses can save money on and place customers in the sales funnel as soon as the call goes through!               

Toll-Free Numbers may have been around for 50 years, but that doesn’t mean we can’t be innovative! Somos is leading the change in the Toll-Free Industry as we continue to evolve and highlight how Toll-Free Can Do Almost Anything!

Alexa™ and Amazon® are trademarks of Amazon Technologies, Inc. Google Home™ and Google® are trademarks of Google, Inc.  Siri® is a registered trademark of Apple, Inc.  1-800-FLOWERS is a registered trademark of 1-800-FLOWERS.Com, Inc.